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There is nothing more valuable to a club than a world class striker. Over the years, it has been the attackers who take the glory. They take the headlines, and when it comes around to the individual awards, it’s always them who are under consideration.
This makes sense, as when it comes down to it, it is the attacking players who win you games. Of course, defenders play their part, but when it comes down to the pressure moments, it is the strikers who have to deliver.
This is reflected in the transfer fees. Although we have seen the likes of Virgil van Dijk and Kepa Arrizabalaga attract fees of over £70 million over the past 12 months, that is almost all down to the overinflated transfer fees that we have seen over the years.
If we take a look back through the history of football, it is the attacking players who were revered by fans. The likes of Johan Cruyff, Diego Maradona and Pele are remembered by many as the greatest players of the 20th century, and we now appear to have moved on to the era of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Here are the top ten attackers in world football at the moment.
#10 Mauro Icardi (Inter Milan)
If this was purely based on a players’ finishing ability, Icardi would be right at the top of the list. The Argentinian striker comes alive in the penalty area, and is a composed finisher in front of goal. He may not always get the attention he deserves for his ability on the football pitch, partly because of his behaviour off it, but there is no doubt that he is a world class striker.
His goal record in Serie A is quite incredible. He may not offer too much outside of the penalty area, but that doesn’t really matter when he is so good in it. His off field behaviour may have cost him a place in the Argentinian national side, which is a shame, because he has so much to offer.
He has scored 100 Serie A goals for Inter Milan in just 161 games, so there is no doubting his quality.
#9 Sergio Aguero (Manchester City)
Aguero scored one of the most famous goals of the 21st century, when he fired in a last-minute winner on the final day of the 2011/12 Premier League season, in doing so winning Manchester City the title for the first time in 44 years. Therefore, his name will go down in City history regardless of what he achieves in the rest of his career.
Although that goal will always be the defining moment of his career, there is no doubting that he has been a brilliant striker, both for City and his former club Atletico Madrid. His goal record at City is quite remarkable. He is the club’s all-time top goalscorer, with 204 goals in just 297 games, winning three Premier League titles in the process. He has continued to perform under Pep Guardiola, and will likely be targeting Champions League success, the one major honor he is yet to win.
#8 Eden Hazard (Chelsea)
There is a reason Hazard is so regularly linked with a move to the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid. The Belgian has come on leaps and bounds during his time with Chelsea and is now among the most sought-after players in European football. Hazard is the first man we have seen on this list who isn’t a striker, but he still has the ability to turn the game his way in the vital moments.
Hazard probably doesn’t have the sort of goal record that he would like, having netted 91 times for Chelsea in 304 games. However, he brings a lot more to this Chelsea side than just goals. He is one of the best in the world at running with the ball and his ability to change direction at pace, with such balance is one of his greatest strengths.
He is already a world class player but will want to take his game to the next level, and he is certainly capable of doing that under Maurizio Sarri.
#7 Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
There may not be a more complete striker in world football at the moment than Lewandowski. In the way we said Icardi was all about the goals, the Pole offers so much more than that. He has all the qualities of an old-fashioned number nine. He is big and strong, so able to hold the ball up and bring others into play, but he is also more than adept with his feet.
His goal record since moving to Bayern Munich from Borussia Dortmund is sensational. He has played 199 times for Bayern in all competitions, during which he has scored an incredible 157 goals. He is also a man capable of coming up with some magic performances.
For Dortmund, he scored four times against Real Madrid in the first leg of their 2013 Champions League semi-final. And with Bayern in 2015, scored five goals in less than nine minutes against Wolfsburg after coming off the bench at halftime.
#6 Harry Kane (Tottenham)
I think it’s safe to say that Kane can no longer be considered a one-season wonder. The Englishman has now scored at least 20 Premier League goals in each of the last four seasons, which included scoring 30 in just 37 league games last season. He added the World Cup Golden boot to this in the summer, netting six goals in Russia, more than any other player at the tournament.
He has been a huge part of the vast improvement made by Tottenham in recent years and will hope to do so for years to come. One thing he will want is to win trophies in the coming seasons. He is currently 25 but has still never won a major trophy in his career.
If he is to be remembered as one of England’s greatest strikers, he has to win a trophy, whether that is with Tottenham or elsewhere.
#5 Neymar (PSG)
Neymar is a bit of a marmite figure among football fans. The Brazilian became the most expensive player in history last year when he left Barcelona to sign for PSG for a fee of £200 million. There was a lot of debate about what his motives were for making this move.
Some believed that he moved because of the massive increase in wages he would be earning, while he insisted that he wished to challenge the likes of Lionel Messi for the Ballon d’Or. His ability is undeniable, but some of his play-acting on the pitch is embarrassing.
Sadly, this distracts from Neymar’s talent, which makes him one of the best players in the world. However, this is not what people remember about him at the moment. His attitude needs to improve if he is to be remembered for the great footballer he is. That may mean leaving PSG, but if he does stay in France, he really needs to prove his worth.
#4 Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid)
Griezmann is one of the more versatile names on this list. He is capable of being a threat while playing out on the wing, just behind a striker, or as a loan striker himself. His best work, however, comes when he plays alongside an out-and-out striker, often someone more physical, as we saw in the second half of last season with Diego Costa or at the World Cup where he played alongside Olivier Giroud.
He probably isn’t as glamorous as some of the other players on this list, but is an intelligent player. He knows what areas he needs to get in to get goals, and is an expert at timing his runs into the box. He also helps provide to the likes of Costa at club level.
He has an excellent goal record in LaLiga, having netted 80 times in 145 league games during his time with Atletico. He has also won the biggest tournament in football, having been part of France’s victorious World Cup squad this summer.
#3 Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
There is little doubt that Mbappe is the best young player in the world at the moment, and it is almost inevitable that he will be the best player in the world at some point. It is hard to believe that he is still only 19, as he has the calmness and composure of someone ten years his senior. He already understands the game so well, and with his pace and skill, he is almost unstoppable when he is running with the ball.
He has already proved that he is capable of performing at the highest level after a brilliant performance at the World Cup, which saw him win the Best Young Player award as well as scoring in the final. His ability to go past players is quite brilliant, and the sort of thing that makes him a nightmare for defenders. He will only get better in the coming years as he gets more experience, and it is a scary thought to wonder how good he could become.
#2 Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus)
The top two in this list was obvious, it was just a matter of who came in at number one. It isn’t Ronaldo, who made a surprise move to Juventus this summer after nine years with Real Madrid. The Portuguese superstar has been a truly remarkable footballer for over a decade, and now he will hope that he can transfer that to the Serie A as he looks to end Juve’s wait for a Champions League title.
What he achieved with Real may never be replicated. He scored a quite ridiculous 450 goals in all competitions in just 438 games. He is the club’s all-time top scorer and has won a host of awards during his career. He is a five-time Champions League winner and is the only player to have scored in three different finals. He has also won an unheard amount of individual awards, which includes five Ballon d’Or trophies, and four European Golden Shoes.
#1 Lionel Messi
The greatest player of our generation, and maybe the best player of all time as well. It is a privilege that we have been able to see an era with two of the greatest players of all time compete against each other, and I doubt we will see anyone better than Messi in the foreseeable future. There are very few words that justify his talents, which are greater than anything we have seen on the football field.
His goal record speaks for itself, 556 goals in 641 games in all competitions for Barcelona, but he brings so much more than that to this Barcelona team. He drives the team forward and is a brilliant passer of the ball as well. The word genius is overused when describing footballers, but it is one certainly appropriate for describing Messi.
He has won nine LaLiga titles and four Champions Leagues, as well as a host of individual awards. He has won five Ballon d’Ors and was also named the best player at the 2014 World Cup. His achievements are truly incomparable.
